Pretend It Up!
by yamamotoyuki
Summary: Cece has to pretend to be Gunther's girlfriend, but will she really start falling for him? And what will happen when they are blackmailed by someone at school? RATED T FOR LANGUAGE IN THE LATER CHAPTERS Cece x Gunther
1. The problem

_Ring ring_

I woke up to the sound of my alarm clock, just like I did every morning.

_Thursday,_ I thought, _Great, another boring school day. I wish it was Saturday, because then I'd be going to Shake It Up! Chicago._

Me and my best friend Rocky Blue have been dancing on the show for a while now, and I never get tired of it. The lights; the cameras; the fact that the entire city watched the show. But that doesn't matter. What mattered was that every Saturday I get to dance with my best friend.

I quickly ran to the bathroom to get myself ready. After I had a nice, hot shower, I got dressed. I put on my purple shirt with a black vest over it, yellow skinny jeans with holes tore out in the knees, my black high tops, and of course, accessories! To finish it off, I put on some mascara, and my grape lip gloss, and headed to the kitchen.

"Hey hey hey!" I heard Rocky shout as she came down the fire escape.

"Hey Rocky. You hungry?" I asked, holding up a granola bar.

"No thanks." I shrugged my shoulders and took a giant bite out of it.

"Hey, we better hurry or else we'll miss the bus." Rocky was always worried about have perfect attendance, but I didn't mind, except for the fact that I'm always getting detention at least twice a week for being late.

When we finally got to school, we were greeted by two people we did NOT like to deal with every day.

"I am Gunther!"

"And I am Tinka!"

"And we are, the Hessineffers!"

_Not them._ Gunther and Tinka have been foreign exchange students since the first grade, and boy, were they annoying. They always greeted everyone the same way each and every day. At first it was okay, you know, for the first few days they were here, but now, it was just getting old.

"What do you guys want now?" I looked at Gunther giving him my 'Don't mess with me' look, but he just shrugged it off.

"Nothing, we just like to annoy you" Gunther and Tinka laughed.

_They are so not funny,_ I thought.

"Then stop blocking the hall and get out of our way!" Rocky shouted, giving us a few weird looks from a few of the teachers.

"Easy, no need to shout." Tinka said.

"Yes," Gunther smiled, "Is that anyway to treat your friends?"

"Since when have we been friends?" I looked over at Rocky. She just shrugged.

"Since we need your help."

"Ah, I knew you wanted something" Me and Rocky nodded.

"You see, our papa says that we seem like no one wants to be around us….." Tinka started saying.

"Gee, you don't say?" I replied sarcastically.

Gunther continued, "And he says that if we don't start seeing other people besides each other, then we must move back to the old country."

_Move back? To the old country? _The thought of them leaving made my stomach drop. _But if they go back, I may never see Gunther ag-WAIT! Since when do I care about Gunther? I hate him! _

"Rocky, you know that I am dating your brother." Tinka said.

"Unfortunately."

"Well if Gunther does not soon find a girlfriend within the next week, then we must leave."

"So I was wondering if Cece would be my 'Girlfriend.' But only for a week, so my papa does not have to take us away from Chicago. Please Cece. You are our only hope."

"M-me! B-but, I don't know…"

"Only for a week. Then we can go back to hating each other, just like before." Gunther pleaded.

"Do it Cece." Rocky said.

"Rocky! You're on their side now?"

"But if not they will have to move. Personally, it doesn't matter to me, but my brother is dating Tinka, and he would be heartbroken if she left. PLEASE CECE!" Rocky started shaking me by my shoulders.

"Okay I'll do it! Now will you please let go of me, Rocky?" She let go and started jumping up and down with joy.

"Great. I'll pick you up at seven so you can meet my papa, so that we can tell him we're dating. See you then, bay beeeee." Gunther winked as he and Tinka walked away.

_Oh no, _I thought, _what did I just get myself into?_


	2. Meeting the parents

Me and Gunther walked up the steps towards his apartment.

"Are you sure this will work?" I was seriously having doubts about this.

"Of course bay beeeee," Gunther smiled, "Just remember, when we go in, we are to act like a couple, so my papa does not suspect anything."

We walked to the front door apartment. I was about to go in when Gunther stopped me.

"Wait! We should probably hold hands."

"WHAT! I thought I just had to show up."

"When I said 'act like a couple' I meant we had to hold hands and all that other couple stuff, too."

Gunther took my hand and he interlocked our fingers together. I felt a blush creep over my face.

_Why am I blushing? _I thought, _Oh no, now he's smiling at me. Can he tell I'm blushing? Why am I even blushing anyway? I hate him…..at least, I think so._

"Let us go." Gunther said, snapping me out of my trance.

"Uh, yeah, let's go inside."

Gunther opened the door and we walked inside. I was already at Gunther's once for Vatalihootsit Day, which is one of their weird holidays, so I know what to expect.

"Ah, Gunther, you are home!" His mom cried, running out to meet him, "And this must be the girl you have told me about. You are the little Rocky, yes?"

"Actually mama, this is Cece. She is my girlfriend." Gunther put his arm around my shoulder.

"Y-yeah. I'm his girlfriend." I said nervously. It was bad enough having to pretend to be his girlfriend, but actually saying it almost made me gag.

"Well then child, come in. Anyone dating my son is already considered family to me!" She pulled me in and gave me a hug.

"F-family?" Now I was in trouble.

"Squizza. Who is at the door?" Gunther's father walked out.

"Oh Kashlack, this is Gunther's girlfriend." His mom said happily.

"So you are the girl who is dating my son?" He looked at me for a while, before giving Gunther a thumb's up, "I approve! Son, you can really pick 'em, can't you?"

Gunther blushed. _Great, what am I, some sort of prize or something-hold on. Gunther just blushed. Does that mean he likes me? No way, he is probably just embarrassed because of his parents. His parents are really weird. _

"So, Cece, how long have you been dating my little Gunther?" Squizza asked.

_Oh no, we never talked about what to say if she asks that question. I guess I'll have to wing it._

"Well," I started, "We started dating 2 weeks ago."

Gunther looked at me. I mouthed 'Just go with it.'

"I see." Kashlack had a strange look on his face. "So, HOW did you two start dating?"

Now it was Gunther's turn to make something up. "Well papa, it was at the bakery by Cece's apartment, and I saw Cece sitting there…" He looked at me. "And I knew that she was the one for me." I blushed. "So I walked over to her and asked if she wanted to get some ice cream, and as you can see, the rest is history."

_Wow, Gunther really made that story seem believable. _

He slid his arm from my shoulder down to my waist, which made me turn even redder.

"How romantic Kashlack," Squizza smiled. "It reminds me of the time when we first meet."

Gunther's mom and dad looked lovingly into each other's eyes.

"Um, papa. Mama." Gunther interrupted them.

"Oh." They both looked away, with embarrassed looks on their faces.

"Cece and I just wanted to stop by before we went on our date. We are going bowling tonight."

"Uh, yeah. We probably should get going Gunther, before there are too many people there." I quickly said.

Me and Gunther both got up, with his arm still around my waist.

"Well, okay, if you must." Kashlack said. "But remember Gunther, you must be home by 11:00."

"Of course papa."

"Nice to see you again Cece dear," Squizza shuck my hand. "You will make a wonderful bride for my son one day."

"B-bride!" I gasped.

"Okay mama, we must go now. Bye!" We rushed out the door, with his parents waving us goodbye.

"Bride!" I yelled as Gunther shut the door, "No one told me anything about us getting married!"

"Relax Cece. In the old country, people would believe that if you were dating a girl for longer than a week, you would have to marry her, but we are in America, so you do not have to marry me. Unless you wanted to. Do you?" He smirked at me.

"No way! Remember, this is only for a week, then we are back to hating each other. Got it?"

"Relax; I was only pulling your goat. Anyway, let us go."

"Go where?"

"Remember, we told my parents that we were going bowling."

"Really, you were serious about that?" I raised my eyebrows.

"Oh Cece," He face palmed, "Yes, I was serious. We actually need to go on dates, or my papa will realize we are not dating, and take me and Tinka back to the old country."

"Okay fine, I'll go. But don't think this is actually a date, because really, it's not. It's just two, uh, 'friends' going bowling together. Got it?"

"Okay Cece, whatever you want to call it."

He grabbed my hand and we ran down the steps of his apartment building. This was going to a long night.


	3. The date

**At the bowling alley**

When we went inside, there was barely anyone there. It was only us and the guy at the counter.

"You two here to bowl?" The guy asks.

"Really, you need to ask? We're at a bowling alley, so yes, we came to bowl." I replied.

"Sorry. It's just that for some reason, no one has come here for a while, and you two are the first ones since the last group left 3 hours ago."

"Really? How can that be?" Gunther asked.

"Hehehe." Someone laughed while standing behind a bush near the counter.

**FLASHBACK**

_Rocky had known earlier in advance that Gunther wanted to take Cece bowling later that night. She was spying on him after Gunther and Tinka left earlier that day._

"_I don't know Gunther. Was Cece really the best choice?" She had heard Tinka say._

"_Of course, sister twin." Gunther blushed at the thought of Cece._

"_I get it; you have a crush on the red headed girl."_

"_N-NO! Why would I? This is just so we don't have to leave."_

"_Okay, I believe you, Gunther. But you must take her someplace nice for a first date. Perhaps bowling."_

"_Okay that is where I shall take her!"_

_So after school, Rocky had gone to the bowling alley and talked to the guy at the counter. She asked if he could close up the bowling alley for a while, and when he saw Gunther and Cece coming, to reopen it. That way it would be just the two of them._

**END FLASHBACK**

Gunther and I got our bowling shoes and went over to the first lane. Rocky looked over to the guy at the counter and gave him a thumb's up. He mouthed to her 'You so owe me for this.'

We started playing. At first I was behind, but during the middle of it I started catching up to him, but I still was a few points behind him by the end of the game.

"I win!" Gunther cheered.

"You just got lucky." I pouted. I couldn't believe that Gunther was actually good at bowling.

Gunther restarted the game. "No, it is because you are not guiding the ball right." He walked over to me, handed me a ball and grabbed my arms. "See, you must guide the ball like this."

He guided my arms and I let go of the ball, hitting all of the pins.

"I got a strike. That's the first time I have ever gotten a strike in bowling!" I squealed, grabbed a hold of Gunther and pulled him in towards me, giving him a big hug.

He blushed, grabbing my waist and pulling me closer to him. When I finally realized what I was doing, I pushed him away, my face as red as a tomato.

"S-sorry." I said embarrassed by what I just did.

"N-no problem."

_Oh no, why did I do that? _I thought,_ now he may think that I do actually like him, which of course I don't! Do I? No way! This can't be happening._

"Yes!" Rocky did a little victory dance, while trying to stay hidden.

"So, do you, uh, want to go somewhere else?" Gunther asked.

"S-sure. How about a walk in the park?"

"Okay, bay beeeee." Gunther grinned.

I rolled my eyes. We gave the guy at the counter our shoes and ran out the door. Rocky stood up and walked over to the counter, sighing.

"Ah, young love." She smiled.

"Yeah yeah yeah, it's romantic. Now where's my twenty bucks?" The guy asked.

**Meanwhile at the park**

Gunther and I walked hand in hand down through the park, looking out over the lake that was located in the middle of it. There was no one around to see us holding hands, so I just went with it.

_If anyone at school seen us holding hands, _I thought, _then we would be the laughing stocks of the school._

"Hey Gunther?" I said

He looked over at me.

"We probably shouldn't tell people about us 'dating'."

"Why? It's not like we are actually dating."

"I know, but…"

"You are afraid of what people will think." He said.

"I-it's not that I don't like you or anything…..well, I don't LIKE like you, but I just want people making fun of us. We have been enemies since the first grade, so people might make fun of us if they see us together."

"I totally understand Cece." He smiled, "Okay, from now on, we shall only pretend to be a couple around papa and outside of school. Other than that, we will pretend to hate each other. Plus, I too worry what others will think."

"Really? YOU, of all people, care what others think?" I raised my eyebrows.

"Well, it may not seem like it, but in fact I do. I only act like I don't care because if people knew I did, they would make fun of me, and pick on me, and they will probably do the same to Tinka, and I can't stand the thought of anyone hurting my sister twin."

"Wow Gunther." I was shocked, "I never actually knew that. I always thought that you were stuck up and weird, but you're not a bad guy after all."

"Thanks. You are not as bad as I thought you were either."

I smiled at Gunther. Then he did something I never thought he would ever do. He leaned forward and gently placed his lips on mine. My eyes went wide with shock.

_H-he's kissing me! _I thought, _w-why would he do that? I thought he hated me. Well, it's not like he's a bad kisser or anything. CECE! Stop thinking about! It's Gunther. The guy you've hated since first grade, who has now just taken your first kiss._

He pulled away. I just stared up at him, into his big, blue eyes that twinkled like his clothes.

"S-sorry." He said, "It's just that, well, I have actually liked you for a while now, so when papa said we might leave if I did not find a girlfriend, I thought of you, and….."

I stopped him by pressing my lips to his.

When I finally pulled away, he said, "You really mean that?"

"Yes, I do. Gunther, at first when you asked me to pretend to be your girlfriend, I dreaded the thought because I thought I hated you, but know, I think I really like you. At least, that's what I think. These feelings are still really new to me."

"See, I knew you couldn't resist me, bay beeeee!"

"Gunther," I said, "This is a good moment. Please don't ruin it."

"Sorry."

We leaned forward and kissed each other passionately under the light of the full moon. Little did we know that someone was watching us, and this time, it wasn't Rocky.

"Cece and Gunther want their relationship to be a secret? Well, it won't be for long." The person closed the video camera and ran off into the night.


	4. Blackmail

The next few days went on pretty normal. Me and Gunther pretended to hate each other in school, and after school we went on another date, but this time it was a real date, since we were really dating now and not just pretending.

The next day was when we filmed Shake It Up! Chicago, which went smoothly like any other show. You know the usual; Gary trying to be cool for the camera; Gunther and Tinka kissing up to Gary to try and get themselves as main dancers, which only ended in disaster. I couldn't help but laugh as I watched Gunther trying to wash Gary's car, but instead got drenched.

So Sunday, Gunther and I spent the whole day together. We went to the Museum of Sparkles, which was obviously not my choice of museum.We later went and had a picnic in the park, making sure to sit farther away from the more crowed part of the park. Everything was going well.

That is, until the next day at school.

Gunther watched over to his locker, trying to remember his locker combo. He would always forget it, but he finally remembered and opened it. Inside he found a note:

**To Gunther,**

**9:00pm, meet me at the park. Come with your girlfriend.**

** A friend.**

_Oh no, _He thought, _I better show this to Cece._

I was at my locker talking to Rocky when I heard someone behind me. I turned around to find Gunther, with a worried look on his face.

"Cece, I must talk to you in private."

"Um, okay. Hey Rocky, can you….."

"Say no more." She smiled.

"ROCKY! It's not like that, remember. We are only, uh, pretending. Remember?"

"Okay, whatever you say." She winked and walked towards Deuce's locker.

"Okay, so what did you want to talk about?" I asked.

Gunther grabbed my wrist and pulled me into the janitor's closet, locking the door.

"Read this." He passed me the note.

I looked at it; my eye's growing wider with every word I read.

"Who sent this?"

"I do not know Cece. It was in my locker when I checked a few minutes ago."

"Well, whoever it is, they know that we're dating, and not pretend dating, but real dating."

"Well, do you think we should go meet them?"

I scratched my head. "Probably. If this is really legit, then we may be in trouble."

"So, we shall meet at 9:00pm at the park tonight."

"Gunther, I'm scared."

He pulled me close. I laid my head on his chest.

"Cece, do not worry. It is probably nothing. Don't think too much of it."

Me and Gunther arrived at the park at 8:58pm.

"In two minutes we will finally know who sent the note."

Gunther looked at me, noticing the fear in my eyes.

"It's okay, Cece. If he or she tries anything, I'll protect you."

I couldn't help but smile and gaze up into his eyes.

"Well, well. Isn't this nice."

We turned around to see someone in a hood, holding something behind his back. I got behind Gunther, afraid that it could be a knife.

"Relax Cece. It is not a weapon." He said. It was like he could read my mind.

"Who are you?" Gunther shouted.

"Oh, you don't know me, but I know you two. You see, I've seen you two around school and on Shake It Up! Chicago, but trust me, I am no fan."

"Yeah, we can see that." I said.

"Now, now, now. We're all friends here. Well, maybe not 'friends,' but I think you know what I mean."

He started walking closer. Me and Gunther backed up a little.

"What do you want?" I trembled.

"Well, it's not really what I want. It's more along the lines of what YOU want."

"What?"

The person pulled out a camera out from behind his back.

_At least it's not a weapon, _I thought.

He flipped it open, and our eyes widened in shock as a video played of all the times we were together since Thursday. Every date we went on; every conversation. All of it, he was somehow able to film without us knowing.

"H-how?" I was shaking with fear, grabbing a hold of Gunther's arm.

"You don't need to know the details. All you need to know is that you have to do whatever I say."

"Or else what?" Gunther spat.

"Or else this video will be shown to everyone at school. And we all know that you wouldn't want that. You two would be laughed at by everyone, even by people who don't even know you."

Gunther and I looked at each other.

"Let me guess Cece," The mystery man said, "You are too embarrassed by your boyfriend to let the world know your dating?"

"NO! Of course not. I lo-like Gunther a lot. It's just that I don't want anyone picking on me and him." I looked at Gunther, "And I would rather die than see him hurting."

He smiled at me, "Cece….."

"Well then, I guess you'll have to do what I say, and then we can just leave this whole thing behind us."

Gunther nodded, "Fine, but only if you delete the video after."

"Of course, but until then, it stays on a flash drive, which I will have at all times, in case you two try to pull something funny."

"What do you want us to do?"

"Whoa. Not so fast. I`m don`t have anything for you to do right now. But when I finally think of something, I`ll send another note. See you `round." He turned around and ran off.

I let go of Gunther`s arm. Now we really are in trouble.


	5. Getting Suspicious

The next day at school I keep a sharp eye out for anyone who looked suspicious.

"Trying to find the guy we meet last night?" I turned around to see Gunther behind me, making me jump a little.

"Gunther! Don't scare me like that."

"Sorry." He looked to see if anyone was around. Most people were in class now, so he decided it was okay to put his arm around me.

"Don't be. I'm just really freaked out. We don't know who this guy is, what he wants us to do, and when he wants us to do it."

I laid my head on his shoulder.

"Cece, why don't we just skip of class today. I can bring you to the nurse and say that you're sick, and that I need to bring you home. It will give us some time to think."

"Thank you Gunther." I hugged him, never wanting to let him go.

After finally convincing the nurse I was sick, me and Gunther were able to walk over to the park and sit down on the bench.

"Gunther," I said, looking down, "Why would anyone want to do this? What have we ever done to him? I mean, we don't even know him!"

Gunther was also looking down, trying to process what has happened over the last few days.

"I don't know Cece. This has never happened before. Not that I know of, anyway." He turned to me. "Listen, until we figure out who he is and how to stop him, we should do what he says, or else that video will be posted online and sent to everyone at school."

I looked up at him. "But what if he wants us to do something illegal? Or, we could do what he says and he betrays us. What do we do then?"

He took my hand. "If anything like that happens, then no matter what I will always be there for you, cause I know you would do the same for me. I love you Cece Jones."

I smiled. "And I love you too, Gunther Hessineffer."

I leaned in and gently kissed him on the lips. He grabbed my waist and pulled me closer, deepening it. We were like that for a while before finally breaking free for air. He looked at me and gave me a silly grin. I couldn't help but laugh. _Wow, _I thought, _I really feel hard for him._

* * *

><p>After school that day, Rocky ran through the corridors looking for Deuce.<p>

"Hey Duece, have you seen Cece?"

He turned to face her. "Didn't you hear? She went home early today. Apperently she was feeling sick."

Rocky was suprised. Her best friend hadn't even told her that she was feeling sick? Something was definitely wrong.

_Who knows, _She thought, i_t may just be the stomach flu, but Cece would have at least told me she was going home. Maybe she was so sick, she didn't have time to tell me. I better go see her just to be sure._

"Thanks Deuce!" She waved over her shoulder as she ran out the front door of the school, running start towards Cece's apartment.

When she finally got there, she ran up the flight of stairs and knocked on Cece's door.

"I"LL GET IT, MOM!" She heard Flynn shout. She laughed to herself. He has always done that ever since he was little, and she always thought that it was really funny.

"Oh, hey Rocky." Flynn said.

"Hi, is Cece here?"

"No, she should be with you."

Rocky gave him a strange look. "No. Deuce told me that she had went home earlier today because she was sick."

Flynn shrugged his shoulders. "Well, she hasn't been here all day, so either she fell down somewhere, or she skipped off school. I'm gonna go with the second one."

Flynn closed the door, leaving Rocky there standing in shock.

_Why would Cece skip school? _She thought. She quickly turned her heels and ran out of the building.

"I'm going to get to the bottom of this!"


	6. No more lies

Me and Gunther were walking up the steps of my apartment.

"Cece, you better get some rest. We can worry about this tomorrow." We walked up to my door.

"I'm just worried that the school called my mom, saying that I had come home sick."

"Relax, no one is going to know that we skipped school."

Gunther opened the door. I walked in to see Rocky, Deuce and Ty sitting on the sofa.

"Cece, we know you skipped school today." Rocky said.

I looked at Gunther. "REALLY? No one will find out, huh?"

He just shrugged. "Thats really ironic, ain't it?"

Rocky got up. "Don't worry Cece. Flynn is at Henry's and your mom won't be home until tomorrow, but right now, you have some explaining to do."

"But how did you guys find out?"

* * *

><p><em>Rocky quickly turned her heels and ran out of the building.<em>

_"I'm going to get to the bottom of this!"_

_She ran for 5 blocks, trying to get a glimpse of Cece. She stopped when she finally ran out of breath. She decided to go into the park and see if Cece was there. She was walking when she stopped suddenly. She hid behind the bushes. _

_'Red hair.' She thought, 'Sparkles. It's Cece and Gunther! I knew it! They both skipped school, but why?'_

_She ran as fast as she could, shotting through her front door, almost knocking over her brother._

_"OW! Rocky, what was that for?" Ty rubbed his head from the impact._

_"CECE AND GUNTHER SKIPPED SCHOOL!"_

_"WHAT?"_

_They ran down to tell Deuce. When the two of them were there, Rocky explain what had happened, starting with at school when Deuce had told Rocky about Cece._

_"...so I ran back to tell you guys!" Rocky finished._

_"But, Cece and Gunther? What's going on?"_

* * *

><p>"...so we came down to your apartment and waited for you to come home. While you were gone, like I said, Flynn left and your mom called saying she wouldn't be home until tomorrow. Now that we're done talking, it's time for you to talk Cece!"<p>

Me and Gunther just looked at each other.

"G-guys. T-this is just a big misunderstanding. Gunther was helping me get home and, uh, I felt sick again, so we...uh...sat on the bench in the park so I could rest, and..."

"Save it! We know that's not true!" They all were looking really mad.

"Okay, you want to know the truth? Here it is! We skipped off! But only because so much has happened and I needed to think, and school was not the best place to do it, so we lied, saying I was sick and that Gunther needed to take me home. There! You guys happy now?"

"What did you need to think about?" Ty asked.

"IT'S NONE OF YOUR BUSINESS!" I shouted. I couldn't take it anymore. I hated liing to the the ones I love, but I had to, to protect myself and Gunther.

"Cece..." Gunther placed his hand on my shoulder.

I ran to my room, locking the door behind me.

"Cece! Cece, open the door!" I could hear them poundin on the door.

"Guys." Gunther said. "Let me handle this."

"Since when were you so nice to Cece?" Deuce asked.

Gunther was about to answer when Rocky said, "They're pretending to date so that Gunther doesn't have to leave and move back to the old country."

I heard what Rocky said, making me cry more. _I can't believe it! Not only am I being blackmailed, but know I can't even tell Rocky who I'm dating! I'm such a horrible person!_

I heard a soft knock on the door. "Cece, it's Gunther. Please open up."

I tried to wipe away the tears streaming down my face. I eventually got up and slowlyopened the door.

"Wow, that actually worked?" Deuce said, suprised. Rocky her eyes and hit him in the arm.

"OW!" He yelled.

"Cece..." Gunther took my hand. "I think it's time we tell them the truth."

I looked at them. I nodded. I jus t couldn't stand the lies any longer.

* * *

><p>"So that's what happened? You two are being blackmailed?" Rocky was shocked.<p>

"By who?" Deuce asked.

"We don't know." I held onto Gunther's arm. It was all too much to handle.

"But, why?"

I blushed. Gunther noticed so he decided it was his turn to talk.

"Well, you know how we were pretending to date so papa would not take me and Tinka back to the old country, right?"

The three of them nodded.

"Well, now it's no longer...pretend."

All of their mouths went wide open. There was utter silence, until Ty and Deuce cracked up laughing.

"HAHAHA! You and Gunther? Dating? HAHAHAHA! That's hilarious!"

I could feel the tears flowing down my cheeks. Rocky hit them both with her purse.

"You see? This is why that video can't get out! Everyone will laugh at us!" I was trembling now. "I-I j-just can't d-deal with people laughing. Before I lived here, I was always made fun of before, a-and if it happens again, I-I don't know what I would do."

"Why were you made fun of?" Gunther asked.

I looked at Rocky and nodded.

"It's because she is dyslexic."

Gunther's eyes went right wide, and Deuce and Ty just sat there, not knowing what to say.

"I knew it! Now that you know, you don't like me anymore!" I got up, crying harder than ever.

Gunther got up and pulled me close to him. "Cece, I will never judge you because you are dyslexic, and I will make sure that you will never be made fun of again. We will definitely find out who is blackmailing us."

"Gunther..." I buried my face into his chest.

_Ring, ring, ring._

"I got a text." Gunther said.

He flipped open his phone.

**Tell your girl that I got a job for both of you to do. If you don't screw it up, I may just erase the video. Meet me at the park. 10:00pm. Tonight. Oh, and you and your girl better not bring the other three that are sitting on the sofa, or else.**

**A friend**

"Gunther? Gunther! What's wrong?"

"H-he knows." He whispered.

"He knows what?"

"He knows that we just told you guys that he is blackmailing us!"


	7. Mystery Man revealed

_"Gunther? Gunther! What's wrong?"_

_"H-he knows." He whispered._

_"He knows what?"_

_"He knows that we just told you guys that he is blackmailing us!"_

* * *

><p>"WHAT!" I grabbed his phone and looked at the text message. I froze with fear.<p>

"G-Gunther. T-that means, that he is spying on us right now! Oh my gosh! He knows where I live!" I broke down crying again. "Gunther. I'm scared. What's going to happen? Now if we mess up, he may come for me! Which means, he probably knows where you live, too!"

"Cece." Rocky put her arm on my shoulder. "Don't worry. We're here for you. We won't let that guy blackmail you and Gunther anymore. We can help you."

"But righ now," Gunther said, "We need to get to the park. You heard what he said. If we don't mess this up, then he will delete the video."

"Y-you're right." I got up, trying to wipe away the tears streaming down my face. "We need to go now. It's almost 10:00."

Gunther nodded. "You guys need to wait here. We'll try to come back as soon as possible."

"We understand. You guys just need to hurry." Ty replied.

Gunther grabbed my hand and we ran out the door. Duece, Ty, and Rocky just sat there.

"Guys, we can't just sit here," Duece said. "We need to find out who is doing this to them."

Unknown to the three friends, the mystery man was standing outside the window.

"We don't even know why he is doing this to them." Rocky said.

"Oh Rocky," The mystery man said. "You will know soon enough."

The person ran down the fire escape, but on his way down, his jacket got hooked on the railing. He tried to get it unhooked but in the end, he took it off, jumped down to the street below, and ran off, not before pulling his hood over his head.

"What was that?" Rocky jumpedout the window onto the fire escape and ran down the steps. She looked and found the leather jacket. After finally getting it unhooked, she ran back up the steps and into Cece's apartment.

"Look what I found." She held it up.

"Who do you think owns it?" Ty asked.

"It could be the blackmailer. Just a second ago it sounded like someone was on the fire escape before me. Plus, remember the text message."

"So what your saying is, the blackmailer was on the fire escape, seen us talking to Cece and Gunther, sent the text, then ran away to get to the park?" Deuce asked.

"It seems like it." Rocky passed Ty the jacket.

"Wait a minute." He said, standing up. "I think I seen this jacket before. Doen't Frankie have the exact same jacket?"

"Frankie? As in 'The Complication?'"

"No." Rocky said sarcastically, "The other Frankie."

"There is no other Frankie." Deuce sad confused.

Rocky face palmed. She started repeatedly hitting Deuce with a pillow. "I WAS BEING SARCASTIC!"

"OW! Okay, okay. Easy now." Deuce rubbed his arm. Who knew a pillow could pack such a punch.

"Well, we have our main suspect. We better tell Cece."

"We can't now." Rocky said, "They're probably already at the park."

"Well I guess we have to wait until they get back." Ty sat back down.

"So while we wait, who wants to buy a watch? I got twenty five of 'em." He pulled up his sleeve, showing the watches on his arm.

Rocky and Ty justed looked at him, rolling their eyes.

* * *

><p>Cece and Gunther ran through the park, back to the spot where they first met the mystery man. They decided to sit down and wait since they still had some time left.<p>

"Gunther, what do you think we have to do?"

"I don't know. But remember, we have to do it right, or else...well, you know."

"But is all this really worth it? I mean, if everyone knew about us, then we wouldn't haveto date secretly."

"I know." Gunther sighed. "That would be nice, but I don't want anyone laughing at you. After what you just told me, I am even more determined know than I ever was." He looked at me and took my hand. "Cece, I am going to make a promise to you, right now. Now matter what happens, even if we do get laughed at, I will never leave you. I don't care about if I get hurt. All I care about is you."

"Gunther." I smiled.

"Well, I see you're acting all lovey dovey again. Are you even trying to hide the fact that you're dating anymore?"

We turned around. He's here.

"Whatever man. Just tell us what we have to do."

"Well, you see." He paced back an forth. "A certain teacher at school has, well, been on my bad side for a while."

"So, what does that have anything to do with us?" I glared at him.

"I want you two to get rid of him."

"WHAT!" I looked at Gunther in fear. He had the same look in his eyes.

"You heard me. I want him dead! If you do that, then the video will be gone forever, never to be seen again."

"We can't kill a teacher!" Gunther shouted.

"Yeah!" I added, "It's illeagal and it's murder."

Gunther looked at me. "Cece."

"Gunther, you know we can't kill anyone." I felt like I was tearing up again.

He nodded. "I know, you're right." He stepped forward. "I don't care if you have that video! We will not kill anyone for you!"

"So go ahead," I added, "Show the video to the school! As long as we have each other, we don't care!"

Gunther and I walked away, walking hand in hand through the park.

_I don't care about what happens, _I thought, _As long as I have Gunther._

"Hmm. Big mistake, Cece Jones."

When he seen that they were gone, he pulled out his video camera. He preesed play. Now not only did he have the video of Gunther and Cece dating, but unknown to them, he also had one of Rocky saying that Cece was dyslexic. He pulled down his hood.

"Cece. Poor, innocent Cece. You don't know anything, do you? But don't worry. The Complication always get what he wants."

Frankie closed the camera and ran off.


	8. IMPORTANT NOTE!

**Hey, the story isn't over yet, but I just wanted to thank everyone who read my fanfiction, who reviewed it, peopled who favorited it, everyone. This is my first fanfiction and I was worried that no onw would like it, so I'm really happy to see that so many people like it, and I love reading through all the reviews at all the stuff people are saying. **

**Oh and BTW, I know that Frankie doesn't seem like the person to want someone dead, but in this story, he is more evil than he was on the show. I just wanted to add a cool twist to the story. **

**Anyway, THANK YOU EVERYONE!**


	9. Secrets revealed

The next day, Gunther and I decided to walk to school together. They each were worried about what was going to happen.

"Cece!" We turned around.

Rocky, Deuce and Ty were running towards them. Rocky pulled me into a big hug.

"What happened?" Ty asked, after Rocky finally let go of me. "We waited all night for you guys to come back, but you never came back."

"Yeah." Deuce added." We were really worried."

"Sorry. It's just that, well, I decided to stay at Gunther's place last night. I didn't want to be alone, you know, because of what happened."

We started walking up the steps of the school and opened the front doors.

"About that. Cece, we know who-" She was cut off by the sound of the PA turning on. We all covered their ears. Whenever it came on, it would make a loud noise that always hurt our ears.

"Attention students..." The person started.

"Wait, isn't that Frankie's voice?" Gunther asked.

"...Please report to the gym. Don't ask any questions 'bout it, cause it's complicated."

"They don't call him the complication for nothing. Come on guys." Gunther and I started walking towards the gym.

"Guys," Deuce said to Ty and Rocky, "I have a bad feeling about this."

* * *

><p>Once everyone was in the gym, the lights went out. A spotlight came on soon after and was pointed right at Frankie.<p>

"So, you guys are probably wonderin' why I called you all here." Everyone nodded.

"Well," Frankie held up a video camera, "This should explain why.

Mine and Gunther's eyes went wide, and I could see Gunther's jaw drop.

"G-Gunther. T-that's-"

"The camera with the video on it." Gunther finished my sentence.

We turned to Rocky, who was sat next to me.

"That's what we were trying to tell you." She whispered. "Frankie is the one blackmailing you two!"

"But, why?" I felt myself tearing up. "Gunther! He's going to show the video! We-"

I turned to look at Gunther, but he was already standing up. He walked right up to Frankie.

"Why Frankie?" He whispered.

"Gunther man, relax and enjoy the show." Frankie gave him an evil look.

"Yeah, sit down you sparkly freak!" Someone shouted.

"YEAH!" Everyone in the gym was out of their seats, booing and hissing.

"SHUT UP!" I yelled.

Everyone sat down.

"What's the matter Cece?" Frankie grinned. "It's not like the video has anything to do with you."

I ran up to Frankie and got in his face.

"You know perfectly well that it has something to do with me!" I said, trying to be quiet so no one else could hear.

I felt someone grab my arms. It was Frankie's posse.

"LET ME GO!" I kicked my legs, trying to get free.

Frankie just laughed. I looked over at Gunther. Some other guys had a hold of him, too. It was no use. Frankie plugged the camera up to the projector, just like the one's at the theatre, and turned it on.

_Oh no_! I thought_, My life is over!_

I shut my eyes, trying to block out everything. I heard voices. My voice. Gunther's voice. I could hear pins being knocked over. It was when we had gone to the bowling alley. I heard laughter. I couldn't stand it. I heard other people going, "EW! They kissed!" He wasn't kidding when he said he filmed everything, but I wouldn't open my eyes to look. I didn't want to see all the faces looking at me. I heard more voices_. It's Rocky_! I thought.

_ "It's because she is dyslexic."_

_He had been watching us that day!_ I couldn't take it. Now the whole school knew I was dyslexic. I didn't hear anything. I opened my eyes. The video had been turned off. There was a long silence, then out of nowhere, everyone in the gym started laughing. Laughing at me. Laughing at Gunther. Laughing at us being together.

"HAHAHA! Gunther and Cece are dating!" Someone shouted.

"Yeah, and Cece's go some weird disease!" Other's joined in.

"FREAKS!"

"WEIRDOS!"

"LOSERS!"

I felt Frankie's posse let go of me. They were also laughing. I couldn't take it. I ran to Gunther and started crying. I couldn't even hold it in, or do it when no one was looking. I just stood their, my head buried in his chest, crying my eyes out. I felt him put his arms around me, hearing him let out soft sobs, too. Everyone looked over in our direction again, laughing even harder.

"Oh look, the big babies are crying."

I couldn't take the laughter anymore. I ran out of the gym, Gunther coming right behind me. Once we had left, Rocky got out of her seat, and went to the front of the gym.

"HEY!" She shouted.

Everyone went silent. They had never heard Rocky get so mad before. She din't even get that mad at me, even when we were fighting.

"You people are just sick and twisted! How would you like it if you were made fun of because you liked someone?"

A few people looked down. She saw a little bit of regret in their eyes. Not much, but some.

"And so what if Cece is dyslexic? She's still the same person she was BEFORE you guys knew."

Somene spoke up, "But really, Cece and Gunther? Don't you find that funny?"

She could hear people in the crowd snickering.

"Well, I will admit, when I found out I was suprised, but I would never laugh at her. She's my best friend. Her and Gunther are in love. You can't make fun of it, cause it will happen to everyone some day."

She walked down the isles, looking at everyone. Most people were just looking at each other, laughing to themselves. She could see that only a few took what she said to heart.

"You guys really don't get it do you?" She started again. "We have all known Cece for a long time. We didn't know it then, but she struggles everyday with dyslexia. It affects her reading skills, and even her dancing. She felt as if no one understood her. She didn't even tell me until a few weeks ago. And now she has finally found a guy she really likes, who accepts her for who she is, and you dare to laugh at her? You guys need to be more respective of their feelings."

She started walking towards the door of the gym.

"And if you don't get it by now..." She said, "...Well then you guys can just go fuck yourselves!"

She walked out the door, with Ty and Deuce trailing close behind her. Everyone still looking in her direction with wide eyes. That was the first time she had swore, so she knew everyone was shocked, but she didn't care. All she cared about was finding her best friend.


	10. Author's note

**OMG guys! I'm sooooo sorry for it being so long since I last updated the story. I started grade 10 this year and school has been tough, but I pomise that I will update as soon as I can. I started a writing course so my wrting has improved a bit, so I hope thatthe next few chapters will be better than the ones before. I read through some reviews and you guys are right. Gunther and Cece need a better romance going on, so I'll try to maake the story more romantic between the two. I'm soooooo sorry D: I'll update soon!**


	11. A day to remember

I ran through the gym doors, Gunther trailing behind me. I couldn't take it any longer. I heard the laughter, and it brought me back to kindergarten, before I had come to know Rocky, Ty and Deuce, and before Gunther and Tinka moved here from the old country. I remembered it as if it was only yesterday.

"_Cece," I heard the teacher say "Can you read from this story 'Green eggs and ham?'"_

"_Um, okay" I said nervously. _

_A few days early I had found out that I was dyslexic, and after my mom explained what it meant, I had become paranoid, dreading the next time a teacher asked me to read, but I started reading anyway._

"_Do uyo ikle ger…." I tried to get the words out, but all the words just looked like alphabet soup._

"_HAHAHA, Cece can't read" I heard the kids shout._

"_No!" I panicked, "It's not that I didn't learn to read, I can't read no matter what! I have dyswexia."_

_I suddenly realized what I had said. Everyone just stared at me, before laughing again._

"_Haha, Cece has a funny disease." Some said._

"_Eww, I might get it!" Others shouted._

_I had cried so much that day, and after I had gotten home, my mom had packed up our things and we moved to Chicago. _

"_It's for your own good Cece," She had told me, "The other kids would have made funny of you for the rest of your life in school. Promise me you won't tell anyone else. Please baby girl."_

"_I promise, mommy"_

I just keep running. _I'm sorry mom. I'm sorry. _Those words keep running through my head until I felt someone grab hold of me.

"AHHH!" I screamed at the top of my lungs.

"Cece," The voice said, "It's me."

"Gunther…." I looked into his eyes, and I started to cry. I cried for Gunther; for the lies I told; for the people I hurt; I cried out of anger and of fear; but mostly because now, everything I had worked so hard to prevent, has come tumbling down on me, like an avalanche that I just could not avoid. My life was ruined. We would be forced to move again, just like all those years ago.

I thought that Gunther would have moved by now, realizing how much of a pain I was, and just leave me. But he just stood there, smiling, holding onto my waist as tears streamed down my face, stroking my head as it was laid on his chest.

I looked up at him, and something just took over. I reached my hand up to touch his cheek and his hand soon went over mine. I stood up on the tips of my toes, and kissed him gently on the lips. It was a wonderful feeling, just like it had felt the first time we kissed, and every other time, but with each kiss, I feel more in love with him than I had before. It felt like we were the only two people in the world, and that nothing could hurt us. I was in heaven.

Gunther pulled me in closer, deepening the kiss, and to my surprise, he stuck his tongue into my mouth, and my body felt like it was on fire. His tongue danced in my mouth, sending a shiver down my spine. I responded by putting my tongue into his mouth, taking advantage of this moment to feel every inch of it. He didn't seem to care. He broke apart the kiss so that he could lift me up and put my legs around his waist. He carried me into the janitor's closet and we started kissing again, his time more passionately, my fingers in his hair, and his nails digging into my skin. I let out a moan into his mouth from delight, and he quickly took advantage of this. He started feeling my breast making me jump a bit, realizing what was going on and quickly pulled away.

"Gunther… I don't think that, well this is the right time to…."

"Cece I'm sorry." He stammered, "I just got a bit carried away."

I was about to say something else when the door flew open. It was Rocky.

"Oh Cece," She said, pulling me into a hug, "I was so worried about you. As soon as you left I told off everyone who was laughing at you and Gunther, and I ran looking everywhere for you guys."

"You really did that for us? Thanks Rocky. But wait, how did you know we were in here."

"I heard you two in here, and I think I know what was going on." She grinned.

Gunther and I just blushed. She smiled, as if to say 'I knew it.'

"But seriously you guys," She said, "We need to find Frankie and find out what's going on and why he did this."

"Your right," Gunther had a very serious look on his face, "We better get moving."

"Yeah, but let's not try to draw any more attention to ourselves." I replied, "It's bad enough now, since everyone knows the truth."

They nodded. Gunther grabbed my hand and soon we were racing through the hallway, trying to find Ty and Deuce so that we could all confront Frankie.


	12. The girl with a secret

We didn't have to go very far to find Ty and Deuce. As soon as we left the janitor's closet, there they were, standing in front of the lockers waiting for us.

"So, let me guess," Ty said smugly, a big grin on his face, "You found them while they were making out in the closet, right?"

My face went as red as my hair. Gunther was also turning red. Rocky hit Ty with her purse.

"OW! Hey I was only joking around."

"Well jokes over, cause right now we have to find Frankie." She said

"Yeah," I clenched my fists, "And he's going to get it when I get my hands on him. When I'm through with him, no one will even recognize him."

"My girl," Gunther said, "Cute like a kitten and fierce like a tiger. That's so hot." I blushed as he put his arm around me.

"Save it lover boy." Rocky said.

"Sorry."

We ran through the hallway, with determination and only one thing on our mind; to find Frankie. Everyone had left the gym so the hall was crowded again, but no one stood in our way. They all knew who we were looking for, and they could tell from the looks on our faces, that we didn't have time to deal with them and their snarky remarks. We searched every inch of the school, but he was nowhere to be found.

"Well," Deuce said, "Of course he wouldn't be here. After what just happened, he probably knew we would come after him. He's probably been gone for a while."

I dropped my head. _So much for teaching him a lesson, _I thought.

"I know where he went." A voice called out to us.

We looked around, but we couldn't see anything at first, but then out of nowhere, a young girl came out of the shadows. She was a bit taller than me, but not by much. She had dark, chestnut brown hair, with big hazel eyes that were almost hypnotizing if you looked at them for too long. She was wearing a purple shirt with black skinny jeans and sparkly converse (which of course reminded me of Gunther, making me smile a little) and a big purple watch on her right arm. We looked at her in confusion, not knowing what she was talking about.

"How do you know where he's to?" Rocky asked.

"I heard him talking to his friends. You were right when you said that he bolted. He knew you were going to try and look for him. He said that he would be hiding behind the Shake It up Chicago building. That's where they usually hang around. I know; I've seen them there a number of times." The young girl replied.

"How do we know you're not lying?" Deuce raised his eyebrows.

"Because Frankie once came after me too," Her eyes darkened at the thought, "You see, I have a terrible secret, and Frankie found out about it. He said that if I didn't do what he told me to do, that he would tell everyone at school." She started crying. "I-I did what he told me, and, well…" She paused for a minute, "It wasn't the smartest thing I ever did."

"What did he make you do?" I asked. I could feel tears streaming down my cheeks, feeling pity for the young girl. Who knew that Frankie had done this before?

"It's not really what I did, but what he did. H-he did things to me, and because of my stupid secret, I let him. In the end he didn't spill my secret, but now, I feel so ashamed of what happened. I became distant of most people, and ended up not having any friends at all. I-I just can't take it anymore." She clenched her fists.

"If you don't mind me asking, what was your secret?" I asked her.

She looked up at me, with fear in her eyes. They seemed to have turned a bright yellow, which made me, take a step back. "I was pregnant."

I was shocked. "Pre-pregnant."

"Yes, but not because of my own stupid mistakes. I was raped. It was when I was at camp, and when I was asleep, the girls in my cabin had let in a guy, and, h-he took advantage of me while I was asleep." She looked down, "And the worst part, was that no one stopped him. They watched him do it, and they all laughed. After I ended up having the baby, which was a year ago, and I had to give her up for adoption. I just couldn't raise her myself, and she brought me too many bad memories."

I walked up to her and took a hold of her hand. She looked surprised. "What's your name?"

"G-Grace." She managed to get out.

"Well Grace, how would like to come with us and help us teach Frankie a lesson?" She looked at me, her eyes going back to their original colour.

"It's something I've wanted to do for a long time." She smiled.

"Well then," Gunther said, "Show us the way."

She ran ahead of us and we followed her through the school doors and out onto the pavement of the parking lot. Next stop; the Shake It up studio.


	13. It's a trap!

We ran as fast as we could, the blistering sun beating down on us as we quickly made our way to the Shake It Up studio. Leading the way was Grace, as we tried to keep up with her. I still didn't know what to think of this mysterious girl, since I had just meet her, but if what she said was true, then I guess me and her both have something we share; we`ve both been blackmailed by Frankie. Now I know where he actually got his nickname from.

As we approached the studio, I had a weird feeling in the pit of my stomach. Was it fear; anger; perhaps regret. I couldn`t quite put my finger on it, but for some reason as soon as I felt it, it was almost as if someone, or something, was urging me to turn around, to go back, as if saying that something bad was going to happen. I quickly shrugged it off though, knowing that it would only stop me from reaching Frankie.

We turned the corner, and behind the studio, there was Frankie. He was leaning on a crate, with a cigarette in his mouth, and a lighter up to it. _I didn't know he smoked, _I thought to myself.

He moved away from the crate and turned towards us. He had a smile on his face. It sickened me, knowing that he didn't have any regrets about what he has done, not just to me, but to Grace.

"Well, you guys finally showed up. I guess you still remembered my little hiding spot, huh Gracie." She flinched as he said her name.

"What, you don't like the nickname I gave you anymore? And I thought you loved it when I called you 'Gracie.'"

"Save it Frankie! You know why we're here." Gunther's face was flustered.

"Calm down blondie. I do know why you're here, but really, I didn't think it would take you THIS long to figure everything out."

"Why Frankie?" I asked, "Why do this to me and Gunther?"

"Oh Cecelia, you really don't get it, do you?" He moved a bit closer. "I've always like you, and when we first met, and thought you felt the same. But then I overheard your little conversation a while back with the freak twins, how you were going to pretend to be Gunther's girlfriend. I guess I got a bit jealous. So I decided to blackmail you, and to come after you two. I thought that after it happened, you would blame Gunther for it and leave him. Boy, was I wrong. So, I decided that if I showed the footage at school, then maybe this time, you would leave that geek. I made up the story about how I wanted you two to kill a teacher, 'cause I knew you wouldn't do it. It just gave me an actual reason to show the video. So after you both ran out of the gym, I knew you would try to find me, so I came here..." An evil grin was on his face, "...where you jus fell right into my trap."

About ten guys jumped out from behind the crates and surrounded us. I grabbed ahold of Gunther, and I could feel Rocky and Grace grab ahold of me. They backed us into a corner. We had nowhere to run to. We were at the mersy of Frankie and his gang.


End file.
